I'm an artist working with moku hanga, traditional Japanese woodblock printing

06 April 2009

Registration Puzzle

One of the satisfying things about this print is that it gives me the opportunity to use a Mayflower block that I carved facing the wrong way back in December. Figuring out how to integrate that small 8" x 10" Mayflower block with this 8" x 20" print was an interesting challenge that I worked on tonight.

I want the boat to run off the side of the print area, like this:

My kento (registration) marks are at the opposite end of this long print, so I need to somehow extend this block so that the corner kento can be marked 20 inches away. I also need the boat block to be turned at the same angle as the top of the blue ocean area, and I'll need to use a mask to block any ink from bleeding out from around the print area. I decided to try rigging up something with some foam board that I had left over from framing last month.

First I put the Mayblower block on top of the ocean block that I printed yesterday to help me visualize the situation:

I figured that I could use a piece of clear acetate to both be the mask and to transfer all the essential information to the foam board. I cut some acetate to a size larger than the image (I think it was about 11" x 24") and placed it on my sketch (hanshita) being sure to line it up exactly with the registration marks on my sketch. Then I traced the outline of the ship location plus the lines where I would later cut the opening for the mask:

Next I laid the acetate on the foam core, lightly taped it down, marked the spots for the registration marks, and placed the Mayflower block into position. I then traced the outline of the block edges onto the foam board:

I cut the foam board so that the block would fit snugly against it:

And used some tape to make a kento. Tomorrow (I hope) I'll try printing and see if this system works!

Thank you for sharing your thought processes to solve the problem. Its really helpful to see how other people approach problems. As they say, it isn't that the 'Master' doesn't make mistakes, itsvjust that they know how to fix them.

Thanks everyone. Printed this morning and it worked well, if a little fussy. Elizabeth, thanks for saying hi. Bette, that lettering is going to be a carving challenge. It will be done last. Terry, I didn't know you have a blog! Your paintings are wonderful.Marissa, great to see you!